The following published documents are believed to represent the current state of the art and the contents thereof are hereby incorporated by reference:
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,595,775; 5,256,438; 5,135,122; 5,020,237; 4,647,469; 4,551,384; 4,418,082; 4,390,550; 4,356,195; 4,350,711 and 4,332,824;
U.K. Published Patent Application No.: 2005983A;
“Drying, shrinkage and rehydration characteristics of Kiwifruits during hot air and microwave drying”, M. Maskan, Journal of Food Engineering, 48, 177-182, (2001);
“Kinetics of moisture transfer during air drying of blanched and/or osmotically dehydrated mango”, A. Nieto, M. A. Castro and S. M Alzamora, Journal of Food Engineering, 50, 175-185, (2001);
“Analysis of shrinkage phenomenon of whole sweet cherry fruits (Prunus avium) during convective dehydration with very simple models”, M. R. Ochoa, A. G. Kessler, B. N. Pirone, C. A Marquez and A. De Michelis, Journal of Food Engineering, (2006); and
“Drying kinetics of pomegranate arils”, A. R. P. Kingsley and D. B. Singh, Journal of Food Engineering, (2006).